The real monastic walks through life with a barefooted soul, alert, aware, grateful, and only partially at home. ~ Joan Chittister

Thursday, February 05, 2009

meanwhile...

Last night's vesper gathering at Vineyard was beautiful and refreshing. We were invited to come together and seek the Kingdom:

"Prayer is not asking for what you think you want, but asking to be changed in ways you can't imagine." ~ Kathleen Norris

Are we ready to be changed? Are we prepared, if God speaks, to do what he asks? As we gather this week, we focus our hearts on repentance - on our longing to be changed beyond our ability to ask. We ask for humility in our words and for the patience to embrace the silence in which God speaks.

Last week, we invited His Spirit to show us a picture of who we are and who we might become. As we pray together this Mid-Week Vespers, we ask forgiveness for those things which have prevented us from becoming the community to which He is calling. We repent of our cynicism and fear; our pride and selfishness; our lack of faith and our lack of hope. We ask our Father to forgive us and to change us. We ask for faith where there was fear; for hope where there was cynicism; and for humility where there was pride.

We hope you will join us this evening as we seek His kingdom and ask that it come to us here and now - as it is in heaven.

Thanks to last night's prayers and scripture readings, I have had the following song running through my head all morning long (not that that's a bad thing...):

Banquet at the World’s End (Daniel Amos)

The beautiful people, all send their excuses:Real estate and sex lives, livestock and ex-wives)

But the poor are coming, the lame are runningIn their sleazy clothes and orthopedic shoesThere's a harelip spokesman shouting out the news

"Come to the banquet at the world's end!"

There's a string ensemble, and the King's court jesterTelling parables and big jokes, to mongoloids and old folks

The blind are seeing, the dead are breathingAnd the mummies dance in geriatric styleThe amputees are rolling down the aisles

"Come to the banquet at the world's end!"

Candlelight and party hats, duck and pheasant under glassAluminum walkers, thin white canes, caviar and pink champagneThe bride and the groom waltz on club foot laneat the banquet at the world's endThe banquet at the world's endThe banquet at the world's end

Say the beautiful people (the poor are coming)"We'll live with the lights out (the lame are running)Leave us alone now because (the blind are seeing)Hell feels like home now" (the dead are breathing)

Meanwhile...

But the poor are coming, the lame are runningIn their sleazy clothes and orthopedic shoesThere's a harelip spokesman shouting out the news

"Come to the banquet at the world's end!""Come to the banquet at the world's end!""Come to the banquet at the world's end!"

1 comment:

last night i went out for supper with my dad and he was telling me stories about his time in rehab last year, and about this guy whom he had a really difficult time with and who was his leader. "he was mean and ugly, dumb as a post, manipulative, abusive, a liar and had been to jail for sexual assault. but jesus was his best friend. go figure."my dad wasn't being sarcastic.

and the obvious hit me, sitting there, that it was possible for this "awful" man to know and love jesus despite his apparent lack of success at reflecting that. some of us are trying so hard and we still look like hell.

man alive, i can be such a judgemental ass. your song made me think of that.